Name

Year

Credit

credited As

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
Casting Roundup: Nick Jonas is a Deadbeat Dad and Jessie J Joins 'X-Factor'

Nick Jonas is a paragon of innocence, wholesomeness and not being an estranged babydaddy. Or so we thought. If you've been watching ABC's new sitcom Last Man Standing, starring Tim Allen, then you already know about the as-of-yet unseen character Ryan, the father of Kristen's (Alexandra Krosney) baby who left her to care for the child on her own. Kristen is the oldest daughter of Allen's character, Mike Baxter; it goes without saying that he's not too fond of this Ryan individual. But Ryan will have a chance to win us over on the Christmas episode, and the very non-Ryan Nick Jonas will be the actor portraying him. Last Man Standing airs on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. -TVLine
Jessie J is back—and not sitting-down-in-the-middle-of-a-stage-while-other-people-dance-around-her back. I mean back back. The British artist will be making her way overseas to deliver a special appearance on America's newest musical talent competition series, The X-Factor. Jessie J will make her appearance on this week's results show, airing Thursday, Nov. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Fox. - THR
Franklin &amp; Bash is pretty much just a gift to any young adult who suffers from pop culture nostalgia. The two stars are Breckin Meyer and Zack Morris, palling around as fun-loving lawyers. Adding to our yearnings for the days of cinema past is new guest star Sean Astin, who will appear on a Season 2 episode when the series returns to TNT. Astin is the star of old favorites The Goonies, Encino Man and Rudy (I know he has the Lord of the Rings movies under his belt now, but I prefer to remember him scowering the sewers for the treasure of One-Eyed Willy.) On Franklin &amp; Bash, he will play a security guard who takes on a "superhero" persona after hours and fights crime, cape and all. The stars come to his defense when he is accused of murder. -TVLine

Eminem has seen some ups and downs since he made his first feature, 8 Mile, in 2002. At the time, the rapper was at the top of his game, with three bestselling albums under his belt and plenty of critics surprised to find themselves praising his acting work. After his initial success, Em got hooked on prescription drugs and released the two worst records of his career - Encore in 2004 and Relapse in 2009. Now things are looking up again for the newly sober rapper, whose recent self-proclaimed comeback album Recovery just received ten Grammy Nominations, including Album of the Year and Song of the Year for "I Love the Way You Lie" with Rihanna.
In other words, it's the perfect time for Eminem to head back to Hollywood.
Deadline's Mike Fleming reports that the rapper also known as Marshall Mathers is set to team up with Sons of Anarchy writer-creator Kurt Sutter for Southpaw, a starring vehicle that will see Eminem playing a welterweight boxer fighting his way to stardom. As in 8 Mile and his rap lyrics, Southpaw will deal with the same struggles and tragedies that Eminem has battled throughout his life.
"I know he's very selective and doesn't do a lot," Sutter told Deadline. "But he shared so much of his personal struggle in this raw and very honest album, one that I connected with on a lot of levels. He is very interested in the boxing genre, and it seemed like an apt metaphor, because his own life has been a brawl."
DreamWorks co-chairman Stacey Snider, who was one of the first to champion 8 Mile when others were still skeptical, brought the pitch to her studio, which quickly acquired the project. Sutter will start writing a script immediately, with plans to turn in a draft by February, before his FX series begins gearing up for its fourth season.
"I took meetings with Marshall's producing partners over the past seven years," Sutter said. "In a way, this is a continuation of the 8 Mile story, but rather than a literal biography, we are doing a metaphorical narrative of the second chapter of his life. He'll play a world champion boxer who really hits a hard bottom, and has to fight to win back his life for his young daughter. At its core, this is a retelling of his struggles over the last five years of his life, using the boxing analogy. I love that the title refers to Marshall being a lefty, which is to boxing what a white rapper is to hip hop; dangerous, unwanted and completely unorthodox. It's a much harder road for a southpaw than a right handed boxer."
Source: Deadline

S1: E8 Glee is all over the place, I can admit that. But that out-of-control style is kind of what makes the show great. It also means it missteps quite a bit, but at least it keeps things interesting. This week, the choir-fueled dramedy wears all the hats, switching from satire to seriousness to sentimental and back again with each scene and sometime within each scene. It didn’t work the entire time, but when Sue Sylvester combines the three it really works (no surprise there, Jane Lynch is the cornerstone of the show). We also enjoy (or endure in some at some moments) a Glee wedding when Kurt’s dad and Finn’s mom finally take that next step.
The episode starts with Burt and Carol’s huge news. They approach the boys in the hall at William McKinley High and Kurt is immediately giddy (he’s got half the wedding planned in his head before they even finish their sentence) but Finn looks like someone just punched him in the stomach. In his first act as self-appointed wedding planner, Kurt hires New Directions as the wedding band, which means only one thing: a Glee wedding. That does it, and Finn suddenly comes around to the idea. Really? That’s all it took, and now you’re suddenly cool? That kid is like a freaking light switch.
But wait, what’s this? Sue’s sending out invites for a wedding too? What’s that about? Flashback to a recording of Sue’s Corner where Sue’s ex-flame and the lead news anchor embarrasses her by announcing his engagement to the newsy hussy he cheated on Sue with. Naturally, Sue responded by getting on Match.com and finding her soul mate…herself. So she’s decided to marry herself a la that woman in Taiwan back in October. From the looks of her invite list, she’s inviting the president? I’d like to say I’m surprised, but that would be one big lie.
Meanwhile, Sam is getting close to that popularity crown he’s been reaching for, he’s close to recovering from his injury and regaining his Quarterback spot, but he’s missing one puzzle piece: he can’t get Quinn to be his girlfriend. So of course he gets Quinn a promise ring and says he’ll promise not to pressure her and he’ll promise to make her proud. Wow, all this for popularity? This isn’t Mean Girls last time I checked. Quinn thinks it’s sweet, but a bit much, so she says maybe. Smart girl, Sam’s whole thing is either crazy or desperate – I’m going with desperate.
Karofsky is still harassing Kurt. After threatening to kill him, he now just uses simple intimidation, but this drives Kurt to tears. Mr. Schue catches the aftermath and takes Kurt to Principal Sue. Sue says that since Karofsky didn’t actually get caught physically hurting Kurt, there’s nothing she or the school board can do legally. Finally, this issue is being addressed; the kid’s been bullying Kurt all season. Kurt almost lets the secret kiss slip to Sue because he wants her to understand the anger boiling within Karofsky about his hidden identity, but he stops himself. It seems like Sue maybe has a flash of understanding, and agrees to stop calling Kurt “Lady” instead opting to give him an option for a new one – he chooses “Porcelain.” He would choose the one that’s a complement about his perfect skin – he has a ritual, you know.
Rachel gathers the girlfriends of the Glee club need to enlist their football player boyfriends to make Karofsky leave Kurt alone. It needs to be done, but this kind of seemed more like an emergency D.A.R. meeting than a couple of high school girls throwing a plan together. Santana interrupts and is pissed she wasn’t included – she says she’s “dating” Puck. Hmm…if by dating she means hooking up with on a semi regular basis and occasionally dining and ditching at Breadstix then okay, they’re dating. We also learn that Brittany is official with Artie, and what’s this? Tina’s totally jealous. I guess Mike Chang’s abs can’t beat out simple high school jealousy.
As Sue plans her masturbatory wedding, her mother (Carol Burnett) shows up. She’s a professional Nazi hunter – yep you heard that right – but she’s back to set things right. Even so, she’s not doing so well so far. Being the famous Nazi-hunter she is, she left Sue and her sister when they were kids and regularly makes Sue feel awful with her constant criticism whenever she is around. She’s determined to make amends, but she hasn’t yet been to see Sue’s sister in the nursing home, and it seems her main concern is yelling at Sue about her life decisions. You’d think with a comic legend like Carol Burnett on the show, she’d actually be funny, but all she really does is act like a bitch.
The plan to protect Kurt is set into motion, but Finn tells Rachel he can’t do it, making some lame popularity-concerned excuse about how his interference would be worse for Kurt (but mainly for the football team’s winning streak). Are you really surprised? This is high school and popularity is king, plus Finn is so easily swayed. Don’t worry, he’ll swing back around; he always does. In the locker room, Artie and Mike tell Karofsky to stay away from Kurt, but he immediately throws out a few gay slurs about Kurt. Mike loses it and lunges at Karofsky, but the hulking dude throws Mike at Artie. Puck watches but does absolutely nothing (perhaps a result of Santana’s banishment from the girlfriend meeting). Finally, Sam swoops in to help Mike and Artie, but and he and Karofsky fight until Bieste comes in and separates them. Let’s be real though, Sam is teeny tiny. Karofsky is huge. He would have snapped that little blondie in half if this wasn’t a show about a show choir.
Back in the choir room, the girlfriends nurse their boyfriends’ battle wounds - all except Finn and it doesn’t go unnoticed. Rachel is completely disappointed as are the rest of the gleeks. Kurt thanks everyone for their support, and Schue does no reprimanding, but honestly, I wouldn’t have either. Karofsky’s being just plain awful, someone needed to do something.
Mama Sylvester’s attempt at motherly love is a song for Sue’s wedding. That’s when the unthinkable happens: Sue Sylvester sing (and not the talk-singing she did in the Madonna episode). Burnett and Lynch belt “Ohio” which facilitates a mother daughter spat about why Mama left and how Sue was affected by it. Mom and daughter embrace, but of course Mama Sylvester ruins it by being awful. She actually says she’s insisting on wearing white to Sue’s wedding because it suits her skin tone and tells Sue she can’t wear white because it looks awful on her. Seriously, this woman makes Sue look like Shirley Temple.
Kurt takes time after school to teach Finn and his dad to dance in the choir room. Finn is concerned that people will see him dancing with dudes, but that’s all shot when Karofsky walks by and makes fun of Kurt. Burt questions Kurt, who keeps hush about the kiss but admits that Karofsky threatened to kill him. Being the super protective father that he he is, Burt threatens Karofsky and lands everyone in a parent-teacher conference. Karofsky lies and says Kurt is making it up because he likes him (hello, bigotry) but neither kids’ dad is buying it. Principal Sue makes her first good move as principal and immediately expels Karofsky for the death threat. It’s not clear how or why, but for once, Sue really gets it.
At Burt and Carol’s wedding (whirlwind, ain’t it? They got engaged and married all in the same week, but I guess if you can’t wait, you can’t wait) Santana helps Finn with his tie and says he should tout his tryst with her so he can be popular, like Sam is trying to do by being Quinn’s boyfriend. Flashback to Rachel being excited that she and Finn will lose their virginity to each other - whoops. Because he loves Rachel, he decided to keep his secret. Shortly after, New Directions opens the wedding with a little show…hey, The Office already did that. If this is your way of getting back at their writers for the “'Blinded by the Light' with actual blind people” quip on the Glee party episode of The Office, it’s not working. Kurt’s dad and Finn’s mom dance to the alter as the gleeks sing “Marry You” (they really LOVE Bruno Mars, don’t they?). Kurt’s dad gives a tear-jerker of a speech about losing his late wife and finding Carol and she adds to it by talking about how Finn is becoming a brother to Kurt. Finn’s face is immediately covered in guilt; he knows he should have stood up for Kurt in the locker room.
Burt and Carol dance their first dance to Michael Bublé’s song “Sway” as interpreted by Mr. Schue, who manages to hog the spotlight. You’d think he could tone down his wild arm gestures for just a minute so people would spend their time looking at the happy couple and not him, but that’s Schue for you.
Then, Finn gives the best man speech, squeezing in a shout-out to his “awesome” mom but using the speech to talk about how he’s become Kurt’s brother (they’re now Furt, like Brangelina) and apologizes for not standing up for him. Apparently, he’s been feeling guilty for a while because he’s also prepared a performance of “Just the Way You Are” (yep, third Bruno Mars song this season) and serenaded a teary-eyed Kurt with the help of the other gleeks. Finn proudly waltzes with Kurt until his dad cuts in and finishes off the song by recycling its second half to win back Rachel’s affections, who’s clearly forgiven him for his former weaknesses. My only question, why didn’t Kurt bring Blaine as his date? When are they going to really date already?
At Sue’s wedding, Mama Sylvester tries to explain why she left to Sue’s sister, but something about the simplified language she has to use makes it a lot harder to paint an acceptable picture of her behavior. Sue finally weds herself clad in a track suit dress – what else? Finally, Sue confronts her mother and calls her out as a bully. So that’s why she understands Kurt’s issues. She kicks her mother out, and says all she needs is her sister. As much as I loved senselessly evil Sue, I’m actually enjoying the way they’re delving into her character because it’s not taking the snark out of her, it’s just giving it a new, more pointed direction. (And lucky for us, that direction still points toward Mr. Schue.)
Then it’s time for sewing up loose ends. Quinn breaks into Sam’s locker with a nail file and steals her promise ring, so naturally now they’re dating. Who knew the super devout blonde cheerleader would also have the ability to break and enter? (But it’s a nail file, so it’s still really feminine, no worries.) It’s clear that the cheerio wears the pants in that relationship.
Sue’s given Figgins his position back, and unfortunately, Karofsky’s expulsion is overturned. Sue says she can do more as a teacher that as principal and swears to patrol the halls so she can catch Karofsky in the act. Sue is not only hilarious, she’s also become a real human and she actually rocks in a non-comedy related way. But even with Sue’s vigilant promise, Kurt is still fearful of Karofsky’s return. He drops the bomb: he’s decided to transfer to the Dalton Academy because they have a zero-tolerance policy about bullying (are you listening American school boards and voters?). It was only a matter of time before his harsh reality pushed him away from William McKinley High. No one takes the news well, they all swear to protect Kurt day in and day out and of course, Rachel is only worried that he’ll be their competitor at sectionals. Ugh, pull your head out of your ass, mini-Babs. Unfortunately, she’s right to worry about the timing, sectionals are only a week away and they’re down one of their strongest singers.

S2: E4 After all of creator Ryan Murphy’s promises of new Glee club members over the summer, I was starting to get a little worried that it was all a bunch of hype. But thanks to Puck’s idiotic idea to drive his mom’s Volvo through a convenience store to steal the ATM (of course he can’t be like most high school bad boys who get caught smoking pot behind the bleachers, he’s got to get sent to juvy with a bang), New Directions is down a member. Schue says he doesn’t know when Puck will be back. Damnit, Murphy. I’m going to miss that bad boy eye candy. FREE PUCK!
Anyway, Schue’s got a brand new replacement for Puck. Fresh on the DL (disabled list, ladies) after getting pummeled on the football field last week, Sam (a.k.a. Justin Bieber, Surfer edition) swoops in to take his place – albeit with some awful jokes. (Really? A “Sam I Am” joke? Come on, blondie. You can do better than that.) Now that Schue’s managed to bring the team back to an odd number, he announces that the team will compete to see what duo can perform the best duet. Kurt has a theory that newbie Sam is secretly gay (he dies his hair, duh!) and asks him to be his duet partner which starts to worry Finn.
Then there’s a scene that I’m pretty sure just made the rest of the episode a blur for most dudes; Cheerleader make-out! Yep. Brittany and Santana are making out because Santana’s lost her usual make-out buddy, Puck, to the slammer. Santana makes it perfectly clear that there’s no lesbian storyline and denies Britt’s request to do a duet to a Melissa Etheridge song (subtle, sweetie), and instead strong arms Mercedes into being her duet partner because their voices go together so well. (Remember their musical face-off over Puck? It did kind of rock.)
Finn asks Kurt to leave Sam alone, and trudges up their fight from last season over Finn’s homophobic issues. Though Kurt’s ready to completely tune him out, Finn brings up the fact that Kurt’s overzealous approach to his previous crush on Finn was too much and that if Kurt acts the same way with Sam, that the newbie will take so much flack he’ll want to quit glee. But it’s not just Finn. Kurt’s dad, who’s recovering from his heart attack, even says that Kurt was too pushy with Finn last year, which brings up how incredibly difficult and lonely life is for Kurt as the only openly gay student at his high school. He’s the only one who can’t hold hands in the halls with someone he likes, which in high school, is pretty close to torture. They’re really keeping the tough storylines coming, aren’t they?
Finally it’s time for the first duet – Rachel and Finn – and while they usually put me in a sugar coma, they were actually kind of cute. Really! They rehearse Elton John’s “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” and Rachel realizes that they’re “totally” going to win. It makes her realize that she’s really selfish – no, really? She’s inspired by Finn’s goodness, and decides that they have to throw the competition so that Sam will win and thus want to stay on the team. Even though Finn points out that she’s technically doing this just to win at nationals and thus she’s still being somewhat selfish, I’m still pretty impressed with her sudden bout of self awareness.
Tina and Mike Chang (and his abs) are fighting. (Asian fusion’s not so strong any more, eh?) She wants to win the competition because the prize is dinner at Breadsticks and she’s tired of always having uber-Asian dates. Mike wants her to go to “Asian couples therapy” to which she replies, “Why does the couples therapy have to be Asian?” Thank you. I was getting a little tired of the constant references to their Asianness – we get it, and we’re over it. Move on.
In the meantime, Brittany tells Artie she wants to be his girlfriend because she wants to push him around in a stroller (what is with her and babies?). Artie gets to make Tina jealous and Brittany gets to get back at Santana for refusing to be her duet partner. No more cheerio make-out sessions, sorry dudes.
Finn tries to convince Sam not to sing with Kurt, but Sam doesn’t see the problem (he heard him singing and thought it was Faith Hill). Finn explains that he’ll be tortured if he does, but Sam says he gave Kurt his word and that’s the end of it. He quickly learns that being a gleek is torture because he gets slushied as soon as he leaves the locker room. Quinn swoops in and helps him wash off the red slush, making a reference to the time she got blue slushie in her underwear and how it turned her nether regions blue. (Do you usually talk about below the belt issues when you first meet new dudes, Miss Head Cheerleader?) Sam responds by complementing her eyes in Na'vi – the Avatar language? Yikes, this kid has no game.
Back in glee club, we get round two of the Mercedes and Santana show; they rock out “River Deep, Mountain High” and they really do work well together. If Santana wasn’t so incredibly bitchy, a performance like that might have actually made me like her. (Besides, if she doesn’t stop adding an S to the end of every word, I’m going to throw something at my television. “We’s be goin’ to Breadsticks.” Yeah, well not if you can’t learn to speak like a normal person.)
Kurt decides to set Sam “free” (but he chooses to tell him that while Sam is in the shower…awkward), and instead Kurt performs a duet…with himself. He does a full-on Broadway caliber production of Victor/Victoria’s “Le Jazz Hot.” It’s pretty incredible that a character who was a last minute write-in is stealing the show from queen-bee Rachel (he wasn’t slated to be a character on Glee until Murphy met him and wrote him a part). Kurt is quickly becoming the best performer on the show, even if his duet was “vocal masturbation.” Don’t worry Kurt, Santana’s just jealous.
Now that he’s free, Sam partners up with Quinn. When they rehearse, he tries to kiss her and she freaks out, saying she can’t handle a relationship. Finally she references how hard dealing with last year’s pregnancy has made her life, they had been letting that huge issue slide into the background. It’s kind of a big deal, the girl gave away her baby, people.
Though Tina asked Artie to be her duet partner (he denied her, snap!), she and her hard-abbed boyfriend perform a duet, and newsflash kids: Mike can’t sing. So that’s why he’s so quiet. No problem, Tina’s picked the perfect song, “Sing” from A Chorus Line. Mike gets to talk and do what he does best – dance – while Tina acts as support and sings. It was actually done pretty nicely, the gleeks are really getting down with the Broadway tunes again and I have to admit I kind of like it.
After Tina’s great performance, Artie is working extra hard to make sure he and Brittany can top it. He realizes that Brittany just doesn’t have the same skills and that he’s not over Tina. Brittany wants to help him, so she picks him up (like a baby, seriously the girl’s got an obsession) and takes him to the bed. “Before we duet, we’re gonna do it.” Nice one, Britt. Artie eventually tells Brittany that he feels used because his virginity means something to him, but sex means nothing to her. She apologizes (she even learned how to eat spaghetti like the pups in Lady and The Tramp!) but he can’t handle working with her or dating her anymore and he breaks up with her and withdraws from the competition. Bummer, I was actually looking forward to what they were going to sing together.
Finn and Rachel decide that they need to do a bad, offensive version of a song in order to be sure to lose. Conniving Rachel and Finn are actually really entertaining, keep ditching the smultz, guys. This is way more fun. The couple performs “With You I’m Born Again” dressed as a (slutty) nun and a priest. Yikes. Even Quinn says the song made her want to punch them both in the face. (Key word here is “both” – she always wants to punch Rachel.) Mission (and total alienation) accomplished.
Before their purposely awful performance, Rachel and Finn convinced Sam and Quinn to get back together as duet partners. The blond duo do a sweet rendition of Jason Mraz’s and Colbie Callait’s “Lucky.” Super cute, or “So freaking charming” as Santana would say. Poor Kurt, he looks so heartbroken watching the cutesy pair. Ryan Murphy, please give Kurt a boyfriend character, I don’t know how much longer I can watch his heart break.
The duet competition ends and everyone votes…for themselves. Typical musical theater kids. Thanks to Rachel and Finn’s vote, Quinn and Sam win by just two votes and get to go on a Breadsticks date. Sam continues the bad jokes – I guess it’s part of his character folks, we’re just going to have to get used to it. Quinn finally realizes that she doesn’t have to stop being a teenager to move forward with her life, so she tells Sam he has to pay for the dinner instead of using the gift certificate because they’re on a real date. (Brat, did it ever occur to you that you’re in high school and that a 17 year old probably doesn’t have enough money on him to suddenly buy you dinner? But they’re cute, so I’ll shut up.)
Finally, Rachel approaches Kurt in the hall and says what the rest of us knew all along – that he’s the other star of glee club. She also tells him that while she understands that he must feel all alone because he’s the only gay student at school, but that he has the members of glee who all love him and that he’s not truly alone. (And they’ve made me cry for the second week in a row. I’d better stock up on Kleenex for the rest of the season.)
Kurt and Rachel close the episode with a duet (this time for the pure joy of singing instead of an attempt to win dinner at an unlimited Breaksticks restaurant). They belt the Barbra Streisand version of “Happy Days are Here Again/ Come On Get Happy” – Rachel really is a Barbra mini-me sometimes. It was a little mature for high school kids, but it may have even been better than Babs’ version. Glee is back on a roll, and that even without single second of Sue Sylvester in the entire episode. Wow.

While the Red Sox couldn’t manage to keep the Yankees at bay this season, a couple of Red Sox die-hards are gearing up to take the team’s shiny legacy down a peg. Ben Affleck confirmed that he and his brother, Casey Affleck, are gearing up to spank the Yanks by putting their own spin on a Bronx tale called The Trade.
The story follows two real-life Yankee pitchers, Fritz Peterson and Mike Kekich, who traded wives back in the 70s. The script was originally written by Curb Your Enthusiasm producer David Mandel, but the brothers opted to use his version as a rough draft for the next Affleck masterpiece.
Casey doesn’t have a great deal of screenwriting under his belt, but he’s got a pretty good writing partner. Ben’s screenwriting is what catapulted him to fame in the first place (perhaps you remember that Oscar he and Matt Damon won for Good Will Hunting) and he’s proved that he knows his way around a director’s chair with 2007’s Gone Baby Gone and this year’s crime drama, The Town. In other words, yeah, I’m pretty stoked to see what he and Casey do with the Yankee drama.
Though nothing’s set in stone yet, it looks like Ben may continue his triple threat status. He’s hoping to step up to the plate as one of the film’s two leads and possibly as the film’s director. Even with all this speculation flying around, Ben told MTV News that he and Casey are just focusing on getting the script done for now. “I don't know how it will come together — acting, directing, who will do it, but Casey and I decided to write it,” he said.
From the looks of things so far, the film will be a bit of a family affair, with the younger Affleck already attached and buzz about Matt Damon (okay, they aren't related, but close enough) teaming up with his former collaborator once more. In fact, Damon recently confessed to MTV News that he’s “dying” to work with his old friend again. Rumor has it that Damon could take on the second lead next to Affleck, meaning both Fenway fanatics would be forced to don those detested pinstripes while filming – don’t worry boys, it’ll only take a few scalding hot showers to wash off the shame. While acting is by no means Ben's greatest strength and I have no doubt that Matt will seriously outshine him, it would be, at the very least, incredibly entertaining to see the once dynamic duo reunite on the big screen for the first time since they dirtied up a pair of fallen angels in Dogma.
Source: MTV

Paramount Pictures based production outfit Bad Robot isn't known for romance. The company, headed by J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk, has carved a comfortable niche in the entertainment industry for itself as a prolific purveyor of action and science fiction, with genre hits in film and television like Lost, Cloverfield, Alias, Fringe and Star Trek under its belt. Of course, you can't have all your eggs in one basket, so the company has begun to branch out with Morning Glory, a romantic comedy about a hotshot television producer tasked with the challenge of reviving a struggling morning show program despite the constant feuding of its high-profile anchors. Needless to say, the film, directed by Notting Hill's Roger Michell, is a bit of a departure for Abrams and co.
It's also a bit of a departure for star Harrison Ford, who plays egocentric curmudgeon Mike Pomeroy in the November 12th release. The last comedy that Ford worked on was 2003's Hollywood Homicide, and that was funny for all the wrong reasons. On the flipside, the last time he took on a "romantic" role was in 1999's Random Hearts, so longtime fans like myself are anxious to see his suave side and sly smile on the big screen once again. And is there any better way for Ford to get back in touch with his inner heartthrob than doing it alongside Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams? I think not.
So to get you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside, we're exclusively debuting the character posters for Paramount Pictures Morning Glory! Check out Ford, Keaton and McAdams in character as Pomeroy, Colleen Peck and Becky Fuller, respectively, and be sure to see Morning Glory when it hits theaters on November 12th!
Check out the posters below or click for high resolution versions.

It looks like Aang may not have been the last Airbender after all. Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, creators of hit TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender, signed a deal with Nickelodeon to premiere a new series. The new show, tentatively titled The Legend Of Korra will take place in the same world as Avatar: The Last Airbender, and serve as a sequel to the series, following the adventures of the next Avatar, Korra. The series, which retains The Last Airbender producer Joaquim Dos Santos, will premiere in on Nickelodeon in 2011.
Here’s Nickelodeon’s official press release, which I’ll leave with you because I have to go sit down and breathe into a paper bag for a moment. I’ve bolded the plot summary and other important bits.
"Nickelodeon, the number one producer of television animation in the world, has greenlit a new series from the creators of the hit animated TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender, it was announced today by Brown Johnson, President, Animation, Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group. The new series The Legend of Korra (working title), from creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, will premiere on Nickelodeon in 2011, continuing the evolution of the animated franchise and its mythology. The original series was the inspiration for the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies live-action epic adventure, The Last Airbender, which has already grossed more than $115 million at the box office to date.
"Mike and Bryan have imagined a compelling new story inspired by the Airbender mythology that they so brilliantly crafted when the TV series began," Johnson said. "This new avatar is not only a girl, but also hot-headed, independent and ready to take on the world."
The Legend of Korra takes place 70 years after the events of Avatar: The Last Airbender and follows the adventures of the Avatar after Aang – a passionate, rebellious, and fearless teenaged girl from the Southern Water Tribe named Korra. With three of the four elements under her belt (Earth, Water, and Fire), Korra seeks to master the final element, Air. Her quest leads her to the epicenter of the modern "Avatar" world, Republic City – a metropolis that is fueled by steampunk technology. It is a virtual melting pot where benders and non-benders from all nations live and thrive. However, Korra discovers that Republic City is plagued by crime as well as a growing anti-bending revolution that threatens to rip it apart. Under the tutelage of Aang's son, Tenzin, Korra begins her airbending training while dealing with the dangers at large.
Launched in February 2005, Avatar aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon and was ranked among the top five animated properties on television among boys, 2-11 and 6-11 (2005/2006). During this time, the series reached a total of 21.7 million total viewers (persons 2+), including 8.8 million kids 2-11 and 6.3 million kids 6-11*. Currently, Avatar: The Last Airbender is the number one program on Nicktoons among tweens. (Source: *Nielsen Cume Data - July 2008, Live + 7 day, 6 min. qualifier.)
Avatar: The Last Airbender was created and executive produced by Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko.
An award-winning filmmaker, DiMartino was a director at Film Roman for six years, working on the prime-time animated series King of the Hill, Family Guy and Mission Hill. During his tenure there, DiMartino animated and directed the short animated film Atomic Love, which has gone on to screen at festivals across the country including Sundance and the Los Angeles Film Festival. It also aired as part of the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival.
Konietzko began his career in animation as a character designer at Film Roman for Fox's prime-time series, Family Guy. He soon moved to the post of assistant director for two more Film Roman shows, Mission Hill and King of the Hill, working beside animation director DiMartino. Konietzko then became a storyboard artist and later an art director for the Nickelodeon animated series Invader Zim.
The new Avatar series will be produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank, Calif., and is co-executive produced by Joaquim Dos Santos."
Source: Comingsoon

Barnyard reminds me of a classic Far Side comic strip from Gary Larson in which there’s a bunch of cows in a field near a road standing around on two legs smoking cigarettes chatting with one another. One of them suddenly yells “CAR!” and they drop on all fours and act like well cows as the car drives by. Once the car is gone they stand back up again and resume their activities. Funny right? For a comic strip. To concoct a whole movie around the idea however you might be pushing it. And so we have Barnyard. The cows—along with the hens the goats pigs horses et. al.—walk on two legs and conduct themselves in a humanly fashion when the farmer is away. They even party hardy in the barn-turned-speakeasy once the sun goes down. Of course to keep the story going Barnyard throws in a father-son conflict with evil pillaging coyotes as the villains. Whatever. The cows are still standing in the end. The list of big talent lending their vocals this time around also fail to inspire. Comedian Kevin James voices the main cow Otis the “original party animal” who could care less about anything else but having fun. Gruff veteran Sam Elliot plays his dad Ben the strong leader of the farm who tries to teach his son how to care for the other animals. Yawn. Let’s see there’s also Friends’ Courteney Cox as a lovely she cow; Wanda Sykes as her wisecracking friend (does she do anything else but wisecrack?); Danny Glover as a wise old mule (yes this is what he’s been reduced to); and Andie MacDowell as a mother hen. A real mother hen. Don’t even ask about Wild Mike. And don’t even get me started on the fact ALL the bovines have udders regardless of gender. Is Otis a bull trapped in a cow’s body? Of course as I’m obsessing over this rather glaring error in animal realism I have to stop myself realizing I’m watching a movie about talking farm animals livin’ life large as quasi-humans. Sigh. Writer/director Steve Oedekerk—Jim Carrey’s go-to screenwriter having penned Bruce Almighty and both Ace Venturas—also has Kung Pow: Enter the Fist under his belt. Yes he knows a bit about comedy but his comic sensibilities obviously run very broad. In other words there are no subtle inside remarks aimed at the adults. To Oedekerk’s credit there are some moments of hilarity especially when Otis and a bunch of “Jersey” thug cows go for a joy ride. But it’s fleeting. It might be time to take a break from this glut of cutesy CGI animation.

Miller plans white wedding
Actress Sienna Miller will fulfill her childhood dream when she marries film hunk Jude Law-- and wed in a traditional white wedding gown. The Alfie beauty accepted Law's proposal on Christmas Day after he presented her with a glistening diamond engagement ring, and she's already excitedly planning her wedding day. Miller--who yesterday said she was "the happiest girl alive"--is also determined to exchange vows in the presence of God. She says, "I want a big church wedding--it's always been my dream to marry in white. We haven't set a date, but I'm ecstatic."
Wahlberg considers Marky Mark return in Germany
Mark Wahlberg fears he'll have to one day return to the stage as rapper Marky Mark to repay a debt he owes in Germany. The movie star turned his back on his Marky Mark alter ego years ago but admits he left one former business manager demanding one more show. He says, "They'll probably call me saying I owe them from the last time. "A buddy of mine was running this company. I told him I would do a record if he gave me the money to go in the studio and mess around and it never came out." Wahlberg admits if the pal ever calls him on the favor, he'd consider bringing Marky Mark out of retirement for just one show. He adds, "If they'll pay me, (I'll do a) 35 minute set."
Renee planning a New England move
Renee Zellweger is planning to quit Los Angeles for good after she's finished promoting her new movie The Cinderella Man and set up home in New England. The actress tells the new issue of W magazine that she's had enough of life in Hollywood and wants to concentrate on writing books and music in the New England countryside.
Cruz found loneliness in Hollywood
Penelope Cruz led a "very lonely" existence when she first moved to Hollywood, because she didn't have any friends or family nearby. The actress abandoned a successful acting career in her native Spain to seek fame and fortune in Tinseltown, and soon landed roles in 2000 films Woman on Top and All The Pretty Horses. She further shot to prominence starring alongside Johnny Depp in 2001 blockbuster Blow. But she insists fame and success didn't come easily: "If you don't have friends in Hollywood, you can feel very lonely. I certainly did at the beginning, you know, it was really hard for me then. "I was living at a hotel for a long time and didn't know anybody, so it was pretty hard."
Clooney beats Pitt in sex appeal poll
George Clooney has triumphed in the latest round of his sex appeal battle with pal Brad Pitt, having topped a new poll listing Hollywood's hunkiest men. The Ocean's Eleven and Ocean's Twelve cast mates are regular competitors for the number one honor in similar surveys across the world--a light-hearted rivalry they've allowed to enter their friendship. But on this occasion it's Clooney who'll have the opportunity to stand proud in the presence of his pal, after scoring the most votes in a survey of 700 visitors to London's waxwork museum Madame Tussauds. Meanwhile, recent mum Julia Roberts was crowned the sexiest woman.
Branson in mile-high club
Virgin tycoon Richard Branson once had sex on a plane with a complete stranger. The star of reality TV show The Rebel Billionaire was just 18 when he got passionate with the passenger sitting next to him in the economy class section. Their brief encounter ended when they landed and he discovered she had a boyfriend. Branson recalls, "I was about 18-years-old and it was with somebody I met on the plane going to Los Angeles. "We were sitting in economy, and we had a blanket and one thing led to another. I remember her getting off the plane and rushing into the arms of her husband or boyfriend."
Baby and Sideways share honors at Texas Awards
Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby and wine drinking comedy Sideways shared the spoils at the Dallas-Fort Worth Critics Association's 11th annual prize giving in Texas. Eastwood's boxing drama claimed the Best Film prize and the movie's star, Hilary Swank, was named Best Actress, while Sideways stars Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen claimed the remainder of the acting awards. Other winners in Dallas and Fort Worth were French film A Very Long Engagement (Best Foreign Film), Fahrenheit 9/11 (Best Documentary) and The Incredibles (Best Animated Film).
Stone blames Alexander flop on 'homophobic' America
Director Oliver Stone has slammed American audiences as homophobic, and blames this prejudice as the reason why his latest movie Alexander flopped in the US. Stone expects the epic biopic, which stars Colin Farrell as bisexual Alexander the Great, to perform better in Europe as he believes Europeans have a better understanding of ancient history. He says, "Americans don't read about ancient history like the Europeans. And in America there is a raging fundamentalism and morality. From day one the Bible Belt people did not show up because there was one phrase throughout the media and that was 'Alex the gay'. So you can bet your a*s the Americans aren't going to see a war hero who in their heads has something wrong with him. But I don't regret what I have made here for a minute. It's the epic of my life."
Movie bosses warned to accurately portray albinism
Movie director Ron Howard is being advised to tread carefully when filming the movie adaptation of novel The Da Vinci Code this year, by not permitting albino stereotypes. The National Organization For Albinism And Hypopigmentation (NOAH) has asked film bosses to make sure the upcoming movie doesn't portray its albino character as a red-eyed psychopath. NOAH president Mike Mcgowan says, "One huge problem with (author Dan Brown's book) The Da Vinci Code is how (the character of) Silas is described with red eyes. That's a myth. Most often in people with albinism the eyes are light blue or even hazel. "Ron Howard can make a big difference for people with albinism by continuing the trend away from a hack device if they adjust the Silas character to not be an evil albino. "Over the years the stereotyping and misinformation foisted on the albinism community by film-makers does real harm to real people." Tom Hanks has signed up to star in The Da Vinci Code, which is slated for a mid-2006 release.
Articles Copyright World Entertainment News Network All Rights Reserved

With a wave of his magic wand, Harry Potter made $93.5 million disappear from moviegoers' pockets this weekend.
The record-shattering arrival of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone represented a triumph for Warner Bros.' production, marketing and distribution teams. It was clear as early as Saturday morning that Harry was going to rewrite Hollywood history.
Harry's Friday take of $31.6 million immediately gave it top honors for being the biggest grossing single day ever. That record had been held by 20th Century Fox and Lucasfilm Ltd.'s Star Wars: Episode One -- The Phantom Menace, which opened to $28.5 million on May 19, 1999.
As insiders woke up Saturday morning to estimates of Friday's business -- Warners' was estimating $31.3 million then -- it was clear that no matter what happened Saturday and Sunday, Harry would do at least $90 million and quite possibly more for the weekend. That meant it would become the biggest three-day opening weekend ever as soon as the weekend was over. The previous record holder, Universal's The Lost World: Jurassic Park, had grossed $72.1 million for the Friday to Sunday period of its opening over the Memorial Day holiday weekend in May 1997. Lost World did $92.7 million in its first four days of domestic theatrical release.
Harry appears to be on track to crack $100 million on Monday, its fourth day in release, which would make it the fastest film ever to reach that milestone. To do so, it will need to gross $6.5 million, or perhaps a little more than that depending on how Sunday's ticket sales actually come in. Given that there are likely to be a lot of people who despite the record number of theaters (3,672) and screens (about 8,200 or approximately 25 percent of all domestic screens) couldn't get in to see the film over the weekend and want to catch up with it quickly, Harry could enjoy a very strong Monday at the box office. The record for getting to $100 million fastest is currently held by Phantom Menace, which needed five days to get there.
With $93.5 million already in hand and the entire holiday season still ahead of it, Harry seems virtually certain to gross at least $300 million in domestic theaters.
In the face of Harry's mega-blockbuster impact on the marketplace, the Buena Vista/Disney and Pixar computer-animated blockbuster Monsters, Inc. fell sharply -- grossing about $23 million, off 49 percent -- as insiders had anticipated.
Nonetheless, Monsters is an unqualified success story for Disney/Pixar with nearly $157 million already under its box office belt. It went into the record books this weekend as the fastest animated film ever to hit $150 million, doing so in 17 days compared to the 18 days it took DreamWorks' blockbuster Shrek to get there. With the holiday season on its way now, Monsters is heading for a domestic theatrical gross of $225 million or more.
Driven by Harry and Monsters, which together took in about $116.5 million, key films grossed a lively total of about $161 million, up 7.4 percent from last year's $149.9 million when Universal's opening of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas dominated the marketplace.
This year's relatively modest percentage increase in the face of Harry's record-setting launch reflects the fact that last year there were stronger showings for the third, fourth and fifth ranking films on the chart, all of which did double digit ticket sales. This year's fourth and fifth films were not nearly as successful.
THE TOP TEN
Warner Bros.' launch of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone materialized in first place with a magical ESTIMATED $93.52 million at 3,672 theaters ($25,467 per theater).
Directed by Chris Columbus, Harry stars Daniel Radcliffe in its title role.
Harry's average per theater was the highest for any film playing in wide or limited release this weekend.
"Harry is the man," Warner Bros. distribution president Dan Fellman said Sunday morning.
"We were up a little more on Friday [than we thought yesterday] -- $31.635 million for Friday," Fellman noted. "$32.880 million for Saturday. And I'm projecting $29 million for Sunday."
Focusing on the record books, he said, "Obviously, we've broken every single record of mankind. The principal ones are -- It's the largest non-holiday three day weekend, which (had been) Planet of the Apes at $68.5 million. It's the largest three consecutive days ever, which belonged to Jurassic Park [The Lost World: Jurassic Park], which had a Memorial Day Sunday [and did] $72.1 million. The largest four days of all time was the same movie, which was $90.1 million.
"It's obviously the largest Friday, which was Planet of the Apes at $24.6 million. The largest Saturday was Mummy Returns at $26.9 million. The largest Sunday with a holiday was Jurassic [Lost World] at $26 million. The largest Sunday without a holiday was Episode One [Star Wars: The Phantom Menace] at $21.9 million. The largest single day was [Phantom Menace's] $28.5 million, so every day [of Harry this weekend] beats that. It's the largest three-day opening of the year. The largest single week was Star Wars [The Phantom Menace], which did $124 million. That's (going to be) history."
Looking ahead, Fellman pointed out, "This is a very big grossing Monday through Thursday [pre-Thanksgiving period]. It's huge. Grinch, which did $55 million for the weekend [this time last year] did $30 million Monday through Thursday. They did $3.6 on Monday, $4.8 on Tuesday, $9.3 on Wednesday and $12 million on Thanksgiving Day. So we're going to have a monster week."
As for when Harry will hit $100 million, Fellman replied, "I'm hoping to hit it tomorrow. That's the only record left. The fastest climb to $100 million was Star Wars [The Phantom Menace] in five days -- $105 million in five days. I'm hoping we can get there on Monday. And, of course, the records we've broken already were the number of runs and the number of prints."
Audiences are responding very well to the film, Fellman added: "Eight to 80, the kids love it. Parents love it. The exits are sensational. The recommendations are fantastic. Non-readers and readers, you name it, it's just beautiful. You couldn't write a better scenario for what happened here."
Buena Vista/Disney and Pixar Animation Studios' G rated computer animated feature Monsters, Inc. slid one slot to second place in its third week with, considering its new competition, an okay ESTIMATED $23.0 million (-49%) at 3,461 theaters (+192 theaters; $6,660 per theater). Its cume is approximately $156.7 million, heading for $225 million or more in domestic theaters.
Directed by Pete Docter, it was co-directed by Lee Unkrich and David Silverman and written by Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson.
20th Century Fox's PG-13 rated romantic comedy Shallow Hal slipped one peg to third place in its second week with a slimmer ESTIMATED $12.7 million (-44%) at 2,803 theaters (+33 theaters; $4,531 per theater). Its cume is approximately $41.3 million, heading for $75 million in domestic theaters.
Directed by Bobby Farrelly and Peter Farrelly, it stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Jack Black.
Paramount's PG-13 rated thriller Domestic Disturbance held on to fourth place in its third week with a quieter ESTIMATED $5.6 million (-35%) at 2,881 theaters (-29 theaters; $1,944 per theater). Its cume is approximately $33.9 million, heading for the $45 million.
Directed by Harold Becker, it stars John Travolta.
Franchise Pictures' R rated thriller Heist, released through Warner Bros., held on to fifth place in its second week with a calmer ESTIMATED $4.67 million (-40%) at 1,891 theaters (theater count unchanged; $2,470 per theater). Its cume is approximately $15.0 million.
Written and directed by David Mamet, it stars Gene Hackman, Danny DeVito and Delroy Lindo.
Revolution Studios and Columbia Pictures' PG-13 rated sci-fi action adventure The One dropped three rungs to sixth place in its third week with a duller ESTIMATED $4.2 million (-54%) at 2,433 theaters (-461 theaters; $1,726 per theater). Its cume is approximately $38.4 million, heading for $50-55 million in domestic theaters.
Directed by James Wong, it stars Jet Li.
Universal and Intermedia Films' PG-13 rated drama K-PAX fell one notch in its fourth week to seventh place with an uneventful ESTIMATED $3.27 million (-49%) at 2,325 theaters (-256 theaters; $1,405 per theater). Its cume is approximately $45.5 million.
Directed by Iain Softley, it stars Kevin Spacey and Jeff Bridges.
Lions Gate Films' opening of its R rated hip hop comedy The Wash failed to clean up with an ESTIMATED $3.0 million at 749 theaters ($4,005 per theater). Its cume after five days is approximately $3.9 million.
Written and directed by DJ Pooh, it stars Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre.
New Line Cinema's R rated drama Life as a House dipped one level to ninth place in its fourth week with a drafty ESTIMATED $2.73 million (-29%) at 1,288 theaters (theater count unchanged; $2,116 per theater). Its cume is approximately $9.1 million.
Directed by Irwin Winkler, it stars Kevin Kline and Kristin Scott Thomas.
Rounding out the Top Ten was Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures' fourth week of Thirteen Ghosts, a low budget Dark Castle Entertainment production, which was seventh last weekend, in its fourth week with a less scary ESTIMATED $2.19 million (-51%) at 1,627 theaters (-724 theaters; $1,346 per theater). Its cume is approximately $37.7 million, heading for the low $40 millions in domestic theaters.
Directed by Steve Beck, it stars Tony Shalhoub, Embeth Davidtz, Matthew Lillard, Shannon Elizabeth, Rah Digga and F. Murray Abraham.
OTHER OPENINGS
This weekend also saw the arrival of Artisan Entertainment's R rated dark comedy Novocaine to an unfunny ESTIMATED $0.43 million at 105 theaters ($4,120 per theater).
Directed by David Atkins, it stars Steve Martin, Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern.
SNEAK PREVIEWS
There were no national sneak previews this weekend.
EXPANSIONS
The expansion front this weekend saw Miramax Zoe Films' R rated French comedy Amélie widen in its third week with an encouraging ESTIMATED $1.3 million at 183 theaters (+115 theaters; $7,926 per theater. Its cume is approximately $2.7 million.
Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, it stars Audrey Tautou.
USA Films' R rated black and white drama The Man Who Wasn't There went wider in its third week with a hopeful ESTIMATED $0.85 million (-17%) at 250 theaters (+81 theaters; $3,385 per theater). Its cume is approximately $3.1 million.
Directed by Joel Coen and written by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, it stars Billy Bob Thornton and Frances McDormand.
Fox Searchlight's R rated animated feature Waking Life expanded in its fifth week with an okay ESTIMATED $0.25 million (-6%) at 92 theaters (+26 theaters; $2,717 per theater). Its cume is approximately $1.5 million.
Written and directed by Richard Linklater, Life is a likely candidate in the new Best Animated Feature Oscar category.
"We have some modest expansions [upcoming] where we hope to get to a little past 100 [theaters]," Fox Searchlight distribution president Stephen Gilula said Sunday morning. "The film is playing extremely well in some of the major cities and much more modestly in the small markets. It's an urban movie and it's a sophisticated college town film holding extremely well in cities like Cambridge and Berkeley, but less well in the smaller cities. We've held extremely well in Manhattan.
"I'm pleased that we've held our own against all these big [specialized] movies that have opened [such as The Man Who Wasn't There from] the Coen Brothers and Amélie and Novocaine. There's a lot of film in the market right now. This fall all these markets are getting very crowded. So we're pleased that we're holding our own with such a very challenging film like this, but there's a core audience that's very devoted to it. And we're, of course, eyeing the Academy Awards and the chance to be the third animated feature [nominated for the new best animated feature category]."
WEEKEND COMPARISONS
Key films -- those grossing more than $500,000 -- took in approximately $161.03 million, up about 7.41 per cent from the comparable weekend last year when key films grossed $149.91 million.
This weekend's key film gross was up about 32.69 percent from last weekend of this year, when key films took in approximately $121.35 million.
Last year, Universal's first week of How The Grinch Stole Christmas was first with $55.82 million at 3,127 theaters ($17,851 per theater); and Paramount's opening week of Rugrats In Paris -- The Movie was second with $22.72 million at 2,934 theaters ($7,743 per theater). The top two films one year ago grossed $78.5 million. This year, the top two films grossed an ESTIMATED $116.5 million.
# # #